General Motors announced on Thursday that its automated driver-assist system known as Super Cruise is being updated to cover approximately 750,000 miles of roads in the U.S. and Canada, or almost double the current coverage.
Super Cruise's last major update came in 2022 when its coverage expanded to 400,000 miles, consisting mostly of U.S. and state highways. The latest update adds many minor highways that connect smaller cities and townships.
The expanded coverage is automatically added via over-the-air updates at no additional charge. The updates will be rolled out to most Super Cruise-equipped vehicles through 2025. The Cadillac CT6 and XT6 and Chevrolet Bolt EUV will miss out, though.
According to GM, the addition of the new roads means Super Cruise will have nearly six times the coverage of rival driver-assist systems. The roads are scanned using lidar to form precise maps that a vehicle's onboard sensors can check against.
GM's Super Cruiser coverage expands to 750,000 miles of roads across U.S. and Canada
Super Cruise is a true hands-free driver-assist system complete with support for lane changes and trailering, though it requires constant monitoring from the driver who needs to be ready to take back control when prompted. This means it is still relegated to Level 2 on the SAE scale of self-driving capability.
Level 3 is the first level where the driver is freed from monitoring the road, though only for brief moments. Currently, Mercedes-Benz is the only automaker with a Level 3 system. Its system, known as Drive Pilot, only functions at speeds of up 40 mph, and in the U.S. only on select highways in California and Nevada.
Level 4 permits the driver to avoid monitoring the road for extended periods, though only within set conditions. Level 5 is the ultimate goal. It means a system can equal the performance of a human driver.
More updates are planned for Super Cruise. GM eventually aims to have 95% of U.S. roads covered, which will make many door-to-door journeys possible. GM originally planned to market this more capable version as Ultra Cruise; in January it said it was abandoning the Ultra Cruise name and would instead stick with Super Cruise since it is already recognized by consumers.
